Rich Gannon, Las Vegas Raiders
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(Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
The Las Vegas Raiders have made steps this offseason to have a more competitive team for the 2026 NFL season. In free agency, they brought in pieces to improve the offensive line and defense while also having a new coaching staff.
Moreover, the Silver and Black recently signed veteran QB Kirk Cousins as a potential starter. Even if the Raiders do decide to take Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 overall pick, they have a reliable signal-caller to turn to if Las Vegas feels that starting a rookie QB isn’t the right move.
With all the moves that the Raiders have made this offseason, the team’s former QB, Rich Gannon, shared his realistic expectations for Las Vegas in Year 1 under new head coach Klint Kubiak.
“When you take a step back and look at the division, it’s clear how much ground there is to cover,”Gannon said in an April 3 video from the New York Post. “You’ve got Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City, then Bo Nix paired with Sean Payton in Denver, and Jim Harbaugh alongside Justin Herbert with the Chargers. It makes you realize this isn’t something that’s going tobe fixed overnight.
“There’s a sense that Klint Kubiak and the coaching staff understand that, especially while working to develop a young quarterback. It really comes down to doing the small things the right way and building the roster with the right kind of people, players who are fully bought in and committed to winning, not just the lifestyle that comes with it. That kind of mindset has to be the standard in the locker room.”
Rich Gannon Wants Certain Players to Set the Tone
Moreover, Gannon notes that wins and losses might not be what’s most important for the Raiders in 2026, as he would like to see players set a standard that willbe the way the teamprepares andplays for the foreseeable future.
“For veterans like Kirk Cousins and newcomers such as Fernando Mendoza, the message is simple: set the tone,” Gannon added. “Be the hardest worker, the toughest competitor, and the smartest presence in the building. Put in the work and make sure everyone else is held to that same level. And if something falls short of that standard, speak up and address it head-on.”
Raiders Get Blunt Message From NFL Analyst
Mendoza had his Pro Day on April 1, and ESPN NFL analyst Louis Riddick shared what he saw from the former Indiana Hoosiers QB.
“It’s really his presence,”Riddick said on the April 1 edition of “NFL Live.” “He comes off, and a lot of it is the unspoken, intangible part of the evaluation that you get and that really jumps out at you when you are around this young man.
“We can talk about how smooth he looked working from a simulated under‑center snap, what his footwork looked like, and how consistently on balance he appeared, how tight the spiral was during his warm‑ups, and for the majority of his workout.
“We can talk about all of that, but it’s the way he commanded himself from the time he walked out on the field until the time he came over here, sat down, and answered the questions that he answered. It just kind of oozed franchise-caliber quarterback type of stuff. And that’s an important part of what he’s going to be asked to do, which is to really take charge.”